Getting Started

Contact Linda Ashworth (lrashworth@nwc.edu or 651-631-5265) to set up a phone or in person appointment to discuss registering for a FOCUS internship.

Also, see FOCUS Registration Instructions for more details on how to register.

Qualifications for a psychology internship:

• Be in good academic standing with at least a 2.0 GPA
• Prerequisities vary depending on emphasis and background
• Must have completed at least 8 psychology credits from Northwestern College
• Approval from  faculty supervisor

Psychology Internship Details

• Course Code: PYC 4995
• Credits: 1-3 credits
• Contact Hours: minimum of 33 contact hours per 1 credit. Most interns exceed and do two times  the minimum # of hours. The intern also has academic work in addition to the contact hours.
• Faculty Supervisors:
  Criminal Justice emphasis: Ghlee Hanson (gjhanson@nwc.edu or 651-286-7472)
  Health Psychology and Marriage & Family emphasis: Melissa Mork (mbmork@nwc.edu or 651-628-2069)
• Learning Agreement:  There are academic components to your internship.  The Learning Agreement is to be developed by the student and their faculty supervisor to establish the internship's academic objectives, assignments, and deadlines.  The academic component of your internship may include weekly journals, periodic meetings with faculty supervisor, assigned readings, research paper, book summary, and/or oral presentation. 
• Site Visit:  Work with your faculty supervisor to  make arrangements for the appropriate site visit for your internship.  Minimally your faculty supervisor should speak with your on-site supervisor via phone or email.  Your faculty supervisor may need the intern's  assistance to facilitate the site visit.

You will need the following to register:

• A written description of the internship. Include duties, hours, accurate site and supervisor contact info and start/stop dates.
• Accurate contact info from internship site. This includes an email and  phone number for a human resource representative and at least one on-site supervisor.
• Accurate start/stop dates, number of total hours, number of hours per week and number of credits you desire.
• Understanding of liability related issues: You should be aware of the risks and potential liability issues associated with this internship. Will you be required to have background check or a drug test? What risks or safety issues will you face? Do you need to sign confidentiality agreements or other legal documents?
• Approval from your your faculty supervisor before you begin the internship. Bring all of the above information when you meet with your faculty supervisor.
• Must be a junior standing and 60+ credits.
• Must be admitted into the FOCUS degree program.